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June 11, 2001
"Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. THAT'S relativity." - Albert Einstein
Time is flying by. This month marks my six year anniversary here in Chicago. I moved here solely for the purpose of taking classes at ImprovOlympic and Second City. I began classes (Level 1 at both) the same month. I instantly fell in love, not only with improvisation, but with Chicago as well. I don't know what it was, but I really began to like it here. Probably for the very first time I was actively pursuing something creative, as opposed to falling into something like I usually did/do.
It was however, some time before things really began to gel/click for me... I was taking Del for the second time (I think) and I was also taking my Level 5 class with Michael Gellman. He told us he wasn't teaching us as much as he was our director and we were putting up a show. I loved that and I loved his strong, constructive criticism of our work. ("Man, this group really needs some therapy," he muttered to me after the first half of the first class. We had just finished an angry, heated argument on either abortion or alcoholism. I was just surprised it wasn't over the Catholic Church. That class loved debating the Church for some reason.) That show, which was not great by any means, really taught me a lot about being a performer and much more about being a director. Del and Michael would tell me to say "hi" and other things to each other. It was cute.
"I notice no one mentioned the coke or the hookers. Let's not forget the coke and the hookers." - Del Close, at a memorial for a former colleague.
I am finding myself very contemplative nowadays. It's either the six year thing or my birthday or just my general mood re: improv. The very first improv group I belonged to was called The Back Alley Untouchables. The movie had just come out ("The Untouchables" that is.) Which was in 1987. Heh, Del was in that and my first team was named after it.. weird coincidence. Just thought of that. We did very bad sketch and very bad games. It was fun while it lasted, I guess.
The last week was good. I performed with the Pat Shay Dancers at ImprovOlympic on Thursday. That was a pretty good show. I didn't do too much in it, to tell the truth. The suggestion was "Cats." "Cats, thank-" "Cats, the musical!" "Cats, the Musical. Right. Thanks." That exchange between Nicky Margolis and an audience member made me laugh.
I did also perform this past Friday with the Ian Brooks All-Star Musical and Comedy Revue at the Playground. Coincidentally, it was everyone who's on the PSD, but not the PSD. That was a fun show. A bit looser and weird since the stage is so weird (to us). Pat was a bear. I had an accent in the first scene. Let us not speak of that.
On Saturday, we had rehearsal. The Pat Shay Dancers rehearses every week with a different member taking the directorial reins. This week it was Rich Sohn's turn to "be dick" and he did such a great job. I really enjoyed that rehearsal. It had a strong Annoyance-flavor ("ginger"?) to it and reminded me of my classes with Mick. It was a lot of fun. I like rehearsing with this group; they're fun and smart and we totally rag on each other's personal lives (or lack thereof.)
I wrote the above a few days ago and JUST got around to posting it. I just got home from ImprovOlympic. The Pat Shay Dancers had a show. It was good, but I really, really stank. I just froze in one scene and poor Angela had to carry the scene.. the look in her eyes was like "Uh, are you actually going to be in this scene or what?" Note to self, RE: You, Pee-You. Dan Sipp is now regularly performing with us and he's great fun.
After the show, I hosted the Slugfests and they were both really great. It was Elizabeth McNaughton and Pat O'Brien. Two completely different tones and styles, but both immensely entertaining.
One of the best websites around is the Wahoo Gazette. Written by a production assistant on the Late Night with David Letterman show, it's an hilarious inside look at the workings of a great late night talk show. I don't know the website address, but type "Wahoo Gazette" in your favorite internet search engine (I like Google, personally) and it's sure to come up.
I like Bruce Campbell. He's an actor and he's mostly been in low-budget films like the classic Evil Dead trilogy and the dreadful Congo. He was a regular on the Xena and Hercules shows and he even directed the last episode of Hercules. He has a website and when he was on a terrific two part Homicide:Life on the Streets, I wrote him to tell him he did a great (rare) dramatic turn. He wrote back the next day and we e-conversed a bit. A very nice man. He's out plugging his book about his adventures in B-moviedom, "If Chins Could Kill." (I really want to get a poster of that title) Anyway, Mr. Campbell was on the Late, Late Show with Craig Kilborne. To make a long story short, it was terrible. Kilborne was rude and obviously knew nothing about Bruce Campbell. He read a few stats and then barely engaged his guest in conversation. I've seen Bruce Campbell on other talk shows and he's a very funny, generous guy, but you would never have known that from that Kilborne appearance. Leno is trying, Dave is fun, Conan is great. Dave is the best with guests. I don't know how or why Kilborne is on the air. *sigh*
Sorry about that.
The Pat Shay Dancers have picked up another show Saturday at eight o'clock. I won't be there and that sucks.
Alright, I gotta get out of here. See you on Monday.
END OF LINE
June 25, 2001
IF TODAY IS YOUR BIRTHDAY: You are sensitive to the degree of being psychic. You are loyal and romantic and yearn to find the "right person." Not everyone understands you, but most people are fascinated by you. Pisces, Virgo individuals play major roles in your life, could have these letters, initials in names: G, P, Y. Travel in July could include vacation and the beginning of a torrid romance.
Thanks, Sydney Omarr!
I love the paranormal. When I was a kid I desperately wanted to be a parapsychologist and that was long before "Ghostbusters." I remember my Aunt Lillian making fun of me because I said I wanted to go to college in Scotland (when I was 7) so I could hunt for the Loch Ness Monster. The first thing they teach you, should you wish to investigate the paranormal, is to be a skeptic. Not a cynic, but a skeptic; take everything with a grain of salt. Let's look at Mr. Omarr's horoscope for Monday posted above. The first three sentences are things that most people wish to believe about themselves. That's part of the trick of being one of these self-proclaimed "psychics"; saying things people want to hear. And as for that last sentence... my torrid romance has already
begun.. her name is IMPROV. (that is soooo gay!)
SIDEBAR
Let's take a moment here to discuss the word "gay."
Obviously, the Gay Pride parade was just yesterday (as I write this) and most people use the word to describe someone who is homosexual. Few, if any, still use the word to describe something "light-hearted, or flighty." I think a broader and, more popular by the day, definition of the word "gay" is "something too sincere, lacking in irony or self-awareness." That's just my opinion and that's how I'm using the word here. Click here to read an article on the changing definition of the word from Salon.com.
END SIDEBAR
More fun with the Pat Shay Dancers.
We had a show this past Thursday. I was looking forward to playing with Deep Schwa, but they had switched their show with People of Earth. I really enjoyed their show. Great timing on the edits and walk-ons. And fellow 1776 alum, Dave Hill, did a very funny job as Thomas Jefferson (even though his fellow POEer, Alex Fendrich plays him in 1776.) We had our show and it was going very, very well until the very last scene. It just went on and on and on... It was the Land of 5 Outs. Finally, lights were pulled. Tough one. Show overall was good, however. It was also Nicky Margolis' birthday. We've had a Dancer birthday almost every week this month. We had delicious cake. Someone remind me that I owe Dina money for her cakes. Friday night I went to see "Tedium" from Oobleck Theater. <http://www.geocities.com/Broadway/Alley/1483/>
It used lots of puppets and its use of a desk was so creative. The stage was extremely small and the desk (one of those old Board of Ed. Wooden teachers desks) consumed most of the stage. The top of the desk had a lamp and a typewriter, but there were tons of these little "pop-ups" built into the desktop (a tombstone, a little house, etc.) Things would fall off the top and into a surprise drawer in the front of the desk. More than halfway through the show the desk slowly gets turned on it's front so that the regular desk drawers are on top. The drawers were pulled out at certain times to reveal a city scape and several interiors of different buildings. So inventive and fun. I loved that.
"Tedium" was part of Puppetopolis. Who know there was such a large puppeteer community in Chicago? I didn't, but now I know and knowing is half the battle. At the show I saw Dina Connelly who played Willow in Thriller Theater Three: Butcher, Baker, Vampire Slayer; Scooby Meets Buffy. A very long title. It was very nice to see her again. She said she would love to come see this years Thriller Theater.... What's that you say? Another Thriller Theater? Another babka?
"Blair, how'd you like to have flared teeth?" - Jo Polniaczech
There will be a Thriller Theater 4 this year. This time it's Scooby Meets the Facts of Life. Which, on a grammatical level makes absolutely no sense whatsoever, but in Laughland equals hilarity. How can I not be working for network right now? Auditions are coming soon. I'm not producing this time around (the only reason it's happening, to tell the truth) but I am writing and directing it. Keep your eyes peeled for the audition notices. They're coming soon. But Jason, you might say, it's kinda early to be thinking of Halloween, isn't it? First off, it's never too early to think of Halloween. Secondly, if you want to rehearse for a month you have to start in late August / early September. It's July already! July!
"John, why don't you give it up? You're obnoxious and disliked." -Ben Franklin to John Adams
The tradition is gone. For the past two years, we've been doing a staged reading/singing of the musical "1776" for the Fourth of July at ImprovOlympic. It's a shame as I adore that play and I can pretty much do it all from memory. All the songs and the dialogue. This year just kinda fell apart with everyone's schedules at odds and my own schedule an absolute wreck. I'm moving this week and all Hell has broken loose in my apartment. So, no "1776" this year. I'm sure no one cares except for me. If you're interested I'll be performing my one-man, a cappella version in my NEW apartment on July 4th. Stop on by.
"We've spawned a new race here, Mr. Dickenson. Rougher, simpler, more enterprising, more violent, less refined. We're a new nationality; we deserve a new nation." - Ben, again.
I'm in the middle of "John Adams" by David McCullough. A fantastic book. Admittedly, amazingly biased in favor of Adams. He was a bit of a prig and a know-it-all, but that's why I love him. He was the only one (as far as we know, that is) that knew that America would become a world power. He knew! How the f- did he know? This is the third biography of John Adams I've read and this is the first one that makes me want to keep reading. I really like it and when I'm done you can borrow it if you want to learn more about "America's Colossus of Independence."
I'm 33 today. Here are a few things I have learned.
This past Saturday, the Pat Shay Dancers stood in for Baby Wants Candy. The Babies were doing a performance at the Dixon Chamber of Commerce (actually for them, not at the actual COC). Unfortunately, they drafted Nicky Margolis and Pat Shay for their show. Dina Facklis had to miss, so it was up to Rich, Angela, Dan and me to do the show. We called in Reserve Avenger Chris Day and we did the show with 5. It was a fun show and we did things that we rehearsed earlier that day (quicker edits, faster scenes, etc.) I love that. I have three shows coming up at ImprovOlympic before the end of the year. That's not counting the IO Anniversary show that I'm involved in and not counting the possible remount and run of "Nerdography." Also, I've completed (for once) a Halloween play that will (Fates willing) be mounted somewhere as well. Oh, and a book. Oh, yes and that Tectonic Plate Shifter device that will allow me to rule the world! Mhrawr-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-haa!!!
END OF LINE.
PS- it's a Pat Shay Dancers tradition to play the game 1001 with a persons name on their birthday. Thank God for the e-mail. Here are some selected entries for me, Jason R. Chin (I have stupidly not copied who wrote each one, but that could be a little game you can play..)
- 1001 Jason Chins walk into a bar and ask the bartender for a drink. The bartender says no. This peaks the interest of the 1001 Jason Chins who then proceed to learn everything they can about the bar, fill their apartments with bar memorabilia, and start a web page devoted to the bar. They go to conventions held by people who have been refused by the bar, and they develop a role-playing module about the bar.
Years later, the 1001 Jason Chins return to the bar. The bartender still says no.
- Actually only two Jason's walked into an anorexic bar and the bartender said "I can't serve you! You're a double chin!"
- 1001 Jason Chins swish into a Lincoln Park Zoo area tavern after the Gay Pride Parade and ask the bartender for a drink. The bartender refuses to serve them. "Why not?", whine the Jasons effeminately. The bartender explains, "We only serve humans here -- no gorillas, no monkeys, and no Chin-pansies."
- 1001 Jason Chins walk into a bar and ask the bartender for a drink. The bartender says no. Each of the 1001 Jasons ask 1001 more times for a drink and each time, almost without even bothering to listen to the question, the bartender reflexively says no. The bartender is a woman.
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